A Balance in the Force
by read-by-the-tv-light
Summary: Here is my interpretation for what could happen after The Last Jedi. There will be Reylo, though I don't want it to feel too forced.
1. Chapter 1: Broken in Half

**-After The Last Jedi-**  
Kylo remained on his knees until he heard the incessant clearing of General Hux's throat.

"Your orders" there was a small but pregnant pause before he continued, "Supreme Leader?"

Kylo clenched his fist and rose brushing past Hux as he stomped back toward the Finalizer, "To Mustafar."

"And the rebels?" Hux questioned.

"They would be foolish to pick a fight with such diminished numbers." While true, Kylo did not feel ready to face the rebels again.

As Leia got up to walk away, Rey looked down to the two split portions of Luke Skywalker's lightsaber. Two halves split down the center by two very different force users who nonetheless were equals.

When Rey had looked down on him from the Falcon he looked so lost, yet there was no anger there, rather a pleading look in his eyes. It was a look, she realized that belonged to Ben Solo rather than Kylo Ren. She could not face him though, not yet.

-  
The last she'd seen him before she'd thought he was dead, lying on Snoke's throne room, she'd ran to him then. Relief had flooded her when she found him alive but unconcious. She thought about taking him with her but knew she needed to run and he was too heavy to drag with her. Kneeling beside him, she nearly tried to wake him, a small part of her rethinking her decision to not join him. Could she have turned him in that place of such darkness?

She'd reached and brushed some hair away from his face, seeing the scar that split it and thinking of all the pain they'd caused each other. A tear slid down her cheek and she whispered, "Please remember, you're not alone."

A large spark went off behind her and she flinched and turned around, one of the lightsaber's halves catching her eye. She walked over to pick it up and stared down at it. The saber as broken as they were. She looked around until she spotted the other half across the room. She ran to it, and with one glance back at Kylo she ran to find a way to meet Chewie at the rendezvous coordinates.

She knew she could not close herself off from him forever and that there would come a time when they'd have to fight again. Maybe with rather than against, but looking around her, despite Leia's words, she wasn't feeling hopeful. Rey would have to repair the saber, maybe only salvage the crystals, but she'd need to fashion a weapon to be ready. Perhaps the ancients texts she'd taken with her from Ahch-to would have some information on crafting a saber.

Rey took the two halves of the saber and hid them away in the drawers with the texts. When she turned to the main cabin she took in the small group of rebels, and looked again to Finn tending an injured, and unconscious girl. Rey didn't feel jealous, she and Finn had become the family that both had lost. She was happy to see that he did not simply wait for her to return to stave off loneliness, the way she failed to with her family.

Rey looked down and smiled and went to join Chewie in the cockpit to help copilot. When she arrived Poe Dameron was sitting in the seat she'd occupied of late.

Politely she said, "Excuse me."

Poe turned around briefly, flashing a smolder, "Well, hi."

Rey's cheeks warmed, she imagined he had that effect on everyone though. "I think you're in my seat."

Poe smiled, "Oh that's okay, I've got it from here, not to brag but I'm the best pilot in the Resistance, just ask our buddy Finn."

From behind them Finn had entered, "Ask me what?"

"Tell her about my piloting skills, buddy." Poe said.

Finn turned to Rey, "Oh man, is this guy one hell of a pilot. He'll get you where you need to go when you need it."

Rey looked to Chewie, growled softly and shrugged. "Well, I suppose if you want me to take over, just let me know?" She conjectured disappointedly.

"Of course," Poe's face lit up with a charming smile, "and Rey, I'd love to hear about how you beat the shit out of Kylo Ren once we land in Naboo. He's a real ass, but I'm sure you knew that."

Before Rey could respond Chewie growled in warning to prepare for a jump to lightspeed. She planted herself down in a chair by Leia and waited to be launched into another place she'd never seen before.

~~~  
Kylo watched as the blurred stars from their jump to lightspeed materialized into the burning residence of Grandfather. The second the Finalizer touched the ground, he was ready to run to his quarters to come to grips with everything that had happened.

When the bay door of the ship opened, Kylo started out, stopping to turn to General Hux, "Our forces will need to be restored, I leave that to you."

Hux seemed to clench his jaw before responding, "Yes, Supreme Leader."

Kylo stomped toward the obsidian palace of Darth Vader, filled with artifacts of his family he'd recovered through the years. As he neared his room he began to clench his fists, the swell of emotion resulting from the last few days nearly boiling over.

He was Supreme Leader now, but for how long would Hux believe that Rey had managed to kill Snoke, his elite guard and manage to subdue him as well? It was an impossible fight, and as foolish as Kylo believed Hux to be, he was not so stupid as to believe a girl with no training could best all of them.

Rey had left in there, in the wake of their destruction, he had offered her the galaxy and she left after promising he was not alone.

As soon as he arrived in the solitude of the quarters he began to yell and punch and break everything in sight. His recklessness showing with flaming colors as he ignited his saber and destroyed everything in sight.

Kylo fell to his knees, he was the most powerful man in the galaxy, the Supreme Leader of the First Order, and not a single person was by his side- cold, alone, and surrounded by his own destruction.

Naboo was warm, and the sun glowed on Rey's skin, the planet appeared to be lush and beautiful, though Rey did not understand why they were there, perhaps there was nowhere for them to be. Their allies had abandoned them in their time of need. Perhap Leia had chosen this place to start fresh, as a base to rebuild the Resistance.

Poe and Chewie landed the Falcon in a field by an opulent structure resembling a palace, Rey had never seen anything like it. Rey tailed Leia off the ship and asked, "What is this place?"

Leia smiled, "This is the home world of my birth mother, it was not far from Crait. This is where she recuperated from an assassination attack before rejoining the fight in the Clone Wars."

She turned to Rey, "I believe we all need time to recuperate and gather our thoughts so we can all be on the same page before we rejoin _our_ fight."

Rey felt concern wash through her, "Won't Ben know to come here? If this is his grandmother's home?"

Leia was shocked when Rey called her son Ben, a name very few people knew him by anymore, she pursed her lips together and grabbed Rey's hand "I believe the First Order is hurting almost as much as we are right now."

Rey looked to her feet, unsure of whether was referring to Ben's hurting rather than the First Order's. She nodded and took in her surroundings, "It is beautiful here."

"Explore it then, find someplace to meditate, we will all meet inside to eat and discuss."

Rey went to find Finn so that he could walk around with her but instead he found him helping someone carry the unconcious girl inside the palace. She turned back around the the breathtaking expanse around her. The planet was so green, but it was different than Takodana, there was a comforting warmth to the air, and for the first time in forever she felt herself truly breathe.

She walked alongside the castle until she found herself on a sandy beach, which lead into crystalline water. Rey ran to the edge of the water and then away to dodge it. Eventually she ran straight in, wanting to cleanse herself of the days behind her. The salt water burned the cut on her arm that she got fighting Snoke's guards with Kylo, the reminder pulled her from her peaceful wading. Rey walked back toward the dunes and layed back and watched the sunset.

Closing her eyes, she inhaled slowly, reaching out in the force as Luke had once instructed her, when she did she felt herself calming and the balance of the force became more clear and reaffirmed a bit of hope she didn't know she still had. Rey opened her eyes and began to look around, turning her head to toward the right she jumped when she saw him, "Ben!"


	2. Chapter 2: From the Ground Up

"Rey."

Kylo responded trying to sound level headed, and glad she could not see the ruin of his surroundings as he sat leaning back against his bed.

Rey was leaning against the sand dune two feet away from him. She inhaled deeply again, trying to steading her panic, and reassuring herself that he could not see her surroundings. Rey felt her throat go tight, "Please just go."

Kylo's eyebrows drew together, "You should've killed me."

Rey looked down to her lap, she was shivering a bit, she couldn't decide if it was from his words or from the crisp wind that took into the air as the sun got lower. Maybe she should've, she'd had two opportunities to and yet she couldn't. She looked back to his face, tears blinking from her eyes, "Please tell me you did not kill him."

It was Kylo's turn to look down, "I never got close enough to."

Her tears flowed more freely, "Why, Ben? You could've come with me, we could've stopped all this."

Kylo's frustration rose, "And you could've joined me, we could've made something out of everything I've built myself to be."

Rey drew in a shuddering breath and closed her eyes. "Ben…"

"REY!" Called Poe, "The General is calling us all together for a meeting in a little bit."

Rey panickedly looked to Kylo, but he was gone. She wiped her face in a rush and ran to where Poe was waiting for her.

"Sorry, I got side-tracked, for a place with so much sand there's not a lot of beaches on Jakku." She smiled, hoping he would not notice her splotchy cheeks.

"My god, you're soaking wet, you've got to be freezing!" Poe pulled his jacket off and placed it around her shoulders. "You can hang on to that until you find some dry clothes, there's enough rooms here for everyone and there's bound to be some clothes somewhere for you."

Rey nodded, and said "Thank you, Poe."

They headed back toward the palace and Rey walked in the grandiose building, every detail inside was different, and yet it had an openness with the outside that allowed the natural beauty of the planet to become part of the design element.

Poe lead her down a wide hallway with numerous doors and stopped, at one to open it for her. "I believe this is the room Leia picked out for you."

Rey stepped inside and her eyes widened, "This cannot be for me."

The room was the biggest she'd ever seen, when she walked in she realized that this was only a sitting room, and found a bed in another adjoining room. Poe walked in, "The General said something about this being her Grandmother's room. She was a queen you know?"

Rey silently took it all in, she placed her staff down on a couch in the living area. Poe smiled,

"Rose Tico is in the next suite, I imagine Finn will be in there too until she wakes up."

"Rose Tico?" Rey was unfamiliar with the name, but assumed she was the unconcious girl Finn had been looking over.

"She's a maintenance worker in the resistance, she and Finn were trying to break into Snoke's ship to keep them from tracking us. Things went south obviously and here we are, now the damned bastard has probably gotten away, leaving Hux and Kylo Ren to do the dirty work on Crait." Poe spit off bitterly, rubbing his forehead.

Rey had forgotten that it was Kylo who had killed Snoke and not the resistance, more importantly they didn't know Snoke was dead, or how he met his end.

"Snoke is dead."

Poe lowered his hand from his face, "What?"

"He's dead."

Poe's eyes widened, somewhat bright, "What! How?! You have to tell the General! I'll wait outside, you get some dry clothes on! This is huge, Rey."

Poe turned from the room laughing, then closing the door. As soon as it shut Rey plunked herself down on the couch, with her face in her hands. She didn't have time to process her interaction with Kylo and didn't have time to plan what she was going to tell everyone what'd gone down since she left the resistance base.

After searching multiple doors, Rey found a dresser that contained a blue shirt, with a grey vest and black pants. It seemed to be one of the more simple, and less revealing outfits that the Queen had had in her room. She quickly ran out of the room and handed Poe her jacket.

Poe tilted his head, "This way."

They walked for a while before coming to a large room with a table that could fit everyone, what was left of the Resistance was standing in the room chatting, most likely about their odds. When Rey walked in, Finn immediately saw her and ran over to give her a hug.

"I have so much to tell you."

Rey nodded, and said "Me too."

Leia turned then, "Ah good, we can all sit down and bring each other up to speed."

Everyone made their way to different chairs, C-3PO, R2 and BB-8 remaining nearby.

Leia's lips pressed together, "Now we all know the bantha in the room. Our numbers are severely diminished, and our allies abandoned us in our time of need, and you're all wondering what next?"

She tapped her fingers on the table, "Thanks to Vice Admiral Holdo, we are here to fight another day, and The First Order lost a good portion of their fleet. However, we do not know the fate of their leader, Snoke."

This was where Poe cut in, "Actually General, may I ask Rey to speak to that?"

Leia nodded, "Rey?"

Rey looked down to the table, and began to fidget with her hands, "Snoke is dead. B- Kylo Ren is their new Supreme Leader."

There were slight audible gasps around the table as people began whispering with their neighbors, Finn placed his hand on Rey's shoulder, "But how?"

Rey sighed, "Kylo Ren killed him. I was there, Snoke ordered Kylo Ren to kill me, and instead Kylo killed him. Then we defeated Snoke's guards."

Poe blinked, "I'm sorry, _we_?"

Rey nodded, "We defeated them together, but when I asked him to help call off the firing on the transports, his focus was on Snoke's throne. He asked me to join him, to… rule with him. I couldn't though, how could I? I tried to use the force to take Luke's lightsaber but he fought against it. The whole thing split and he was knocked out."

Thinking it best to keep their force connection a secret, Rey stopped there.

She was fighting hard not to look at Finn, or Poe, or Leia, anyone. All she wanted to do was run from the room then back to Jakku where times were simpler.

Everyone was silent. After what seemed like hours, Leia spoke up, "Well this certainly changes things."

Rey met Leia's eyes then and saw them swimming with hope and despair.


End file.
